TOP STORIES

U.S. employment fails to rebound strongly from winter chill

WASHINGTON - U.S. employers hire far fewer workers than expected in January and job gains for the prior month are barely revised up, suggesting a loss of momentum in the economy, even as the unemployment rate hit a new five-year low of 6.6 percent. (USA-ECONOMY/ (WRAPUP 2), moved, by Lucia Mutikani, 775 words)

German judges refer ECB bond buy plan to European Court

KARLSRUHE, Germany - Germany’s Constitutional Court will refer a complaint against the European Central Bank’s flagship bond-buying plan to the European Court of Justice, removing the prospect of it curbing the programme. (GERMANY-COURT/ECB (UPDATE 3), moved, by Norbert Demuth, 800 words)

+ See also:

- ECB/MERSCH-LENDING, moved, 255 words

Stocks climb on hopes for U.S. jobs growth

PARIS - Stocks, oil and some base metals climb on hopes that a U.S. jobs report due out shortly will ease concerns over the pace of global economic growth, and emerging market assets got a lift following their recent sell-off. (MARKETS-GLOBAL/ (WRAPUP 4), moved, by Blaise Robinson, 650 words)

ABB looks to shed over $1 bln in non-core assets-sources

NEW YORK/LONDON - Swiss industrial conglomerate ABB Ltd is seeking to divest several units whose sale could raise more than $1 billion in total proceeds, according to people familiar with the matter, joining a list of large companies looking to shed non-core businesses. (ABB-ASSETSALES/ (EXCLUSIVE, UPDATE 1), moved, by Greg Roumeliotis, Soyoung Kim and Anjuli Davies, 590 words)

SPECIAL REPORT

Francois Hollande puts on a new political face

PARIS - He was in the spotlight for alleged liaisons with an actress, but the president of France was also making an ideological shift that could have major consequences for Europe’s second-largest economy. (FRANCE-HOLLANDE/ (SPECIAL REPORT, PICTURE, GRAPHIC), moved, by Elizabeth Pineau, Julien Ponthus and Mark John, 2,100 words)

INVESTMENT

Emerging markets with low rates may be next victims

LONDON - The next wave of the emerging sell-off may come from economies with relatively low interest rates and greater central bank tolerance for weaker currencies as bold rate hikes in the likes of Turkey have made it too costly for investors to bet against them. (EMERGING/VICTIMS (ANALYSIS), moved, by Natsuko Waki, 800 words)

ECONOMY

German exports, output unexpectedly drop in December

BERLIN - German exports unexpectedly fell on the month in December after four consecutive monthly gains, a sign that the brightening global outlook does not yet mean Europe’s largest economy can rely on foreign demand to power growth. (GERMANY-TRADE/ (UPDATE 2), moved, by Sarah Marsh, 630 words)

UK trade deficit narrows, manufacturing disappoints

LONDON - Britain’s trade deficit plunged in December to its lowest since July 2012, driven by erratic goods such as aircraft, but smaller-than-expected manufacturing growth underscored the challenge of rebalancing the economy. (BRITAIN-ECONOMY/MANUFACTURING (UPDATE 1), moved, by Ana Nicolaci da Costa and William Schomberg, 600 words)

New controls in place, Ukraine tries to dampen currency fear

KIEV - Ukraine’s central bank tries to dampen fears about its currency after imposing new capital controls to bolster the hryvnia that banks say are likely to cripple trade and lead to a currency black market. (UKRAINE/BANK (UPDATE 2), moved, by Natalia Zinets, 515 words)

PARIS - France’s trade deficit shrank last year to its lowest level since 2010, although mainly because exports fell less quickly than imports, figures from the Trade Ministry show. (FRANCE-ECONOMY/TRADE (UPDATE 1), moved, 340 words)

Next wave of super rich heading for London as new crisis bites

LONDON - Political and financial discontent rattling the world’s largest emerging economies is driving a new wave of rich migrants to London’s toppy property market as a place to flee with their wealth. (LONDON-PROPERTY/, moved, by Chris Vellacott, 500 words)

BRUSSELS - ArcelorMittal, the world’s largest steelmaker, forecast higher profits this year, driven by higher steel sales and margins, and an increase in iron ore production as Europe ended two years of decline. (ARCELORMITTAL-RESULTS/ (UPDATE 2), moved, by Philip Blenkinsop, 590 words)

EU says Gazprom yet to satisfy its concerns over prices

LONDON - Gazprom has not yet satisfied the European Commission’s concerns over pricing and the European Union’s executive body may still charge the state-controlled Russian gas monopoly with antitrust abuses, the EU competition chief says. (EU-GAZPROM/ (UPDATE 1), moved, by Huw Jones, 350 words)

S.Africa’s Harmony Gold stops operations after accidents

JOHANNESBURG - South Africa’s Harmony Gold stops all its operations for a 24-hour safety shift after at least eight workers were killed in a rock-fall and fire, the worst accident in South Africa’s mines in nearly five years. (S.AFRICA-HARMONY/ (UPDATE 1), moved, 180 words)

Sacyr group seeks compromise in Panama Canal dispute

MADRID - The companies working to widen the Panama Canal have made a new proposal to resolve a row over cost overruns on the multi-billion dollar project, the consortium says. (PANAMA-CANAL/PROPOSAL (UPDATE 1), moved, 370 words)

Metro sees April listing for Russian wholesale unit

FRANKFURT - German retailer Metro is preparing to float its Russian wholesale business around Easter, two people familiar with the plans tells Reuters, putting it head-to-head with Russian hypermarket operator Lenta in a push for new investors. (METRO-RUSSIA/ (UPDATE 1), moved, 380 words)

WARSAW - Bogdanka expects its coal output to be 9.3-10.0 million tonnes this year, short of its 10.5 million tonne target because of the poorer quality of new deposits, the Polish miner’s chief executive says. (POLAND-BOGDANKA/ (INTERVIEW), moved, by Pawel Bernat, 420 words)